Contents

Profile

Appearance

Toriel with her reading glasses, seen on the title screen if the protagonist spares her.

Toriel is a Boss Monster whose head resembles a white-furred Nubian Goat, structured with droopy ears and short horns. She has a pair of visible fangs and long eyelashes, and her irises have a dark red tint. She has an anthropomorphic body, with paws at the end of her limbs. She wears a long purple robe that displays the Delta Rune on her chest. Toriel is seen with her reading glasses, one instance being in her house when reading a book on snail facts.

Personality

Toriel is a kind monster that acts as a protective mother for the protagonist. She employs tough love on the protagonist as well as Asgore. She cares for children and was excited to become a mother.[1]

Toriel has a playful side and loves puns and bad jokes and she even keeps a journal of puns.[2]

Toriel is said to be intelligent[3] and dreams of becoming a teacher. She has already prepared a curriculum for the protagonist by the time they reach her home in the Ruins.[4] In the True Pacifist Ending Credits, she stands outside a school and, in the Family Ending of a Neutral Route, she starts her own.

Main Story

Before the events of Undertale, she was married to King Asgore and had a son, Asriel. When the first human fell into the Underground, she adopted them as their child. The deaths of their two children pushed Asgore to declare war on humanity, and as a result, she left him and retreated to the Ruins.

Between then and the time the protagonist enters the Underground, she had seen Asgore murder multiple humans and reap their SOULs.

Neutral Route

Toriel guides the protagonist through the Ruins.

At the beginning of the game, Toriel saves the protagonist from Flowey, healing any damage done by the murderous flower. After introducing herself, she guides them through the first few rooms of the Ruins. She encourages the protagonist to deal with monster encounters by talking to them, as opposed to acting violently.

She gives the protagonist a cell phone to keep in contact with one another, as she needs to run some errands further into the Ruins. She tells them to stay where they are, only to be disobeyed. She calls the protagonist frequently as the protagonist goes through the Ruins, and is about to call them again when she finds the protagonist at the entrance to her home.

She introduces the protagonist to their room and plans to raise them as her own. After the protagonist asks her about leaving the Ruins, Toriel abruptly leaves; the protagonist follows.

As she goes toward the exit of the Ruins, she explains that she plans to destroy the exit to prevent the protagonist from leaving, as all other humans who left had died.[5]

Toriel hugging the protagonist.

At the end of the Ruins, Toriel tells the protagonist to prove themself strong enough to survive and fights them in a test of strength. She can be killed or spared; if spared, Toriel lets the protagonist go but tells them not to come back.[6]

Sans tells the protagonist during their rendezvous, that he and Toriel have been friends for a while, bonding over their love of jokes and puns. Neither of them knows each other's name or face, as they communicate through the door that blocks off the Ruins.

Sans also says that Toriel asked him to protect any human that left the Ruins. He remarks that if not for that promise, the protagonist would be "dead where [they] stand."

True Pacifist Route

Toriel reappears just as Asgore and the protagonist prepare to fight, interrupting it with her fire magic, much like she does with Flowey at the start of the game. She explains the motive of her arrival was the realization that the protagonist would have to take a life to leave and that she had been trying to prevent such a thing from the beginning.

As the protagonist's friends come, she introduces herself to them and recognizes Sans's voice immediately. She tells the protagonist that while they may have to stay Underground with all their friends, they will live a happy life regardless.

Flowey then appears. Having absorbed the human SOULs, he binds Toriel and company with vines. When Flowey tries to kill the protagonist, Toriel is the first monster to intervene, using her fire magic to block Flowey's bullets. Her SOUL, along with every other monsters', is eventually absorbed by Flowey, allowing him to become Asriel.

Epilogue

After the fight against Asriel concludes, she learns the protagonist's name, "Frisk." She tells them that they are free to go through the Underground to talk to more of their friends. Meanwhile, Alphys upgrades Toriel's phone, allowing her to send text messages.

Toriel standing outside the school.

Frisk leaves the Underground with Toriel and their other friends. As the others leave Frisk to begin their lives on the Surface, Toriel asks Frisk what they will do now.[7]

If Frisk decides to stay with Toriel, she says that none of this would have happened if they remained with her at the beginning of the game and that it was for the best that they decided to leave the Ruins.[8] She then promises to take care of Frisk for as long as they need.[9] Like in the Ruins, Toriel takes Frisk's hand as they walk offscreen together. After the credits, Toriel brings a slice of pie to Frisk's room.

If Frisk says that they "have places to go," Toriel says that she will see them later.[10] After the credits, Frisk and their monster friends are shown together in a sepia photograph.

In the credits sequence, Toriel welcomes Monster Kid to a school that she opened and teaches at. The school door is adorned with the Delta Rune without the triangles that represented the monsters trapped Underground.[11]

In Battle

Relationships

The Protagonist

Toriel cares for humans who fall into the Ruins and the protagonist is no exception. She tries to keep the protagonist in the Ruins, as Asgore killed the other humans who left her care. If the protagonist spares her, she lets them leave the Ruins, but not before giving them a parting hug.

Toriel's reaction if the protagonist kills her after she is spared thirteen times.

If the protagonist kills her during a Neutral Route, she uses the last of her strength to give them a warning about what lies ahead and calls the protagonist "my child" before she turns to dust.[12] If the protagonist kills her when she offers mercy, she says that the protagonist is like the monsters outside the Ruins.[13] In the Genocide Route, she realizes that the protagonist is dangerous and laughs hysterically before she dies.[14] The death sprite for Toriel is the same in a Genocide Route and on a Neutral Route if the protagonist kills her after she is spared thirteen times.

If the protagonist calls Toriel "mom," it surprises her, and she states that if it makes them happy, then she heartily approves of it.

Calling Toriel on her phone in the Ruins and flirting with her makes her assume the protagonist is joking, if they do it again she is unsure what to make of it.[15] If they flirt with her after calling her "mother," she becomes uncomfortable and calls the protagonist an "interesting" child. She also mentions this in the epilogue.[16]

If the game is reset, Toriel says that talking to the protagonist is like "meeting an old friend for the first time" and also says that she feels this way about most fallen humans.[17]

Asgore

Asgore is Toriel's ex-husband. They were once extremely close, winning first place in the '98 Nose Nuzzle competition[18] and were open about their affection for one another.[19] During their marriage, Toriel's nicknames for Asgore included "Fluffybuns"[20] and "Gorey."[21]

Toriel left Asgore and New Home after he declared war on humanity.[22] After they are reunited on a True Pacifist Route, Toriel criticizes his plan for freeing monsters[23] but still believes that he deserves mercy, even though he is "terrible."[24] When Asgore asks if they can be reconciled or at least be friends, Toriel declines. While she appears to be civil with Asgore when she speaks to him about the future of the Underground in the aftermath of the fight against Asriel, once they are on the surface and everyone else has left, Asgore wonders whether he should leave too, and Toriel glares at him, prompting him to leave her and Frisk alone. However, in the ending credits, she does not mind his presence while trimming the bushes, hinting a developing tolerance or gradual forgiveness.

Flowey

Toriel calls Flowey a "miserable creature"[25] as she fireballs him to protect the protagonist. She is unaware that Flowey is Asriel.

Sans

Sans and Toriel do not meet in person until the end of a True Pacifist Route and the Family and Exiled Queen endings, where they both have become good friends. They started their friendship by telling jokes to each other through the door leading to the Ruins.[26] One day, Toriel entrusted Sans with protecting any human that left the Ruins.[27]

They continue to bond in the epilogue and text each other as Frisk backtracks through the Underground.

Trivia

Toriel's name is similar to that of the Watcher angel "Turiel" (More commonly known as "Yomiel") in Judaism, Christianity and Islam. Furthermore, Toriel herself is described as the "watcher" and caretaker of the ruins.

Toriel's name is a play on the word "tu-torial," as she teaches the protagonist about how the game works.

Toby Fox stated in a deleted tweet that it is possible for Toriel to have said the "F-word." But later, he also mentioned that his tweets etc. are not canon.[29][30]

According to Sans, at some point after the events of the game, Toriel drank three glasses of wine and threw pizza at him like frisbees.[31]

Toriel has a sock drawer despite never wearing socks in-game.

The narrator's reaction to Toriel's sock drawer[32] and Sans's sock pile[33] is similar.

Toriel once wore a flower-patterned muu-muu; other monsters complimented her by saying "nice muu-muu," but she assumed everyone was calling her a cow and never wore it again.[34]

Toriel's initial reaction to the protagonist boring the Dummy.

If the protagonist bores the Dummy during their encounter, Toriel stares in disbelief and confusion and starts thinking in a confused manner before moving to the next room without comment.

When attempting to name the fallen human "Toriel," the response is: "I think you should think of your own name, my child," and prevents the name from being used.

If Toriel was killed and the protagonist resets to the point before her battle, Toriel remarks that the protagonist looks like "they have seen a ghost."

Toriel and Undyne are the only bosses that the protagonist can flee from in battle.

If the protagonist spares Toriel, she can be found by the flowerbed where the protagonist initially awoke. If the protagonist backtracks to talk to her, she tells them "Do not worry about me. Someone has to take care of these flowers."

Asriel also says this if you backtrack to the same location after completing a True Pacifist Route.

The player cannot call Toriel once they exit the ruins even if she was spared. While most players may assume that Toriel intentionally refuses to answer the protagonist's calls outside of the Ruins, she is actually unable to answer due to the Annoying Dog having stolen her phone.

Calling her with the Annoying Dog in the inventory causes ringing in the protagonist's inventory, implying that it stole and ate her phone.

Attempting to open the menu by pressing C after fleeing her battle will have the menu disappear instantly, leaving the room will not reproduce the error.

Gallery

Toriel's sprite if she kills the protagonist.

Toriel glaring at a hostile Froggit.

Froggit leaves, Toriel glares even harder.

Toriel still confused by the strange outcome of the boring dummy fight.

These faces are only used in her conversation with the Annoying Dog in the Hard Mode Ending.

Toriel forcing the player to fight her.

Toriel in a Steam trading card.

A side to side comparison of Toriel committing suicide (right) and Toriel being killed (left). The only difference is the mouths.

References

↑"You read the passage... 'Why did the skeleton want a friend?' 'Because she was feeling BONELY...'" - Toriel, journal in Toriel's House

↑"Since everyone knew she was really the brains behind the throne..." - Gerson

↑"I've also prepared a curriculum for your education. This may come as a surprise to you... But I have always wanted to be a teacher. ...actually, perhaps that isn't very surprising." - Toriel

↑"You naive child... If you leave the RUINS... They... ASGORE... Will kill you. I am only protecting you, do you understand?" - Toriel

↑"If you truly wish to leave the RUINS... I will not stop you. However, when you leave... Please do not come back. I hope you understand." - Toriel

↑"You came from this world, right...? So you must have a place to return to, do you not? What will you do now?" - Toriel

↑"Frisk... You really are a funny child. If you had said that earlier, none of this would have happened. It is a good thing you took so long to change your mind." - Toriel

↑"Well... I suppose. If you really do not have any other place to go... I will do my best to take care of you, for as long as you need." - Toriel

↑"...I see. Well, I hope that I am not keeping you. 'See you around.'" - Toriel

↑"All we know is that the triangles symbolize us monsters below, and the winged circle above symbolizes... Somethin' else." - Gerson

↑"You are stronger than I thought... Listen to me, small one... If you go beyond this door, Keep walking as far as you can. Eventually you will reach an exit. ....... ASGORE... Do not let ASGORE take your soul. His plan cannot be allowed to succeed. ...... Be good, won't you? My child." - Toriel

↑"You... ...at my most vulnerable moment... To think I was worried you wouldn't fit in out there... Eheheheh!!! You really are no different than them!" - Toriel

↑"Y... you... really hate me that much? Now I see who I was protecting by keeping you here. Not you... But them!" - Toriel

↑"Those two were really insufferable together... Nuzzling noses, bein' all cute n' cuddly in public... Embarrassing their children... They were so sweet it made me SICK. Thank god those days are over!" - Gerson

↑"After finishing her update, she moved to pass the microphone to the king. However, she didn't realize the microphone was still in her hands when she said: "Your turn, Fluffybuns." The audience burst into laughter." - Gerson

↑"Then, I would destroy humanity... And let monsters rule the surface, in peace. Soon, the people's hopes returned. My wife, however, became disgusted with my actions. She left this place, never to be seen again." - Asgore

↑"You pathetic whelp. If you really wanted to free our kind... You could have gone through the barrier after you got ONE SOUL..." - Toriel

↑"but she told me to come by again, and so i did. then i did again. and again. it's a thing now. telling bad jokes through the door. it rules." - Sans

↑"one day, though, i noticed she wasn't laughing very much. i asked her what was up. then she told me something strange. "if a human ever comes through this door... "... could you please, please promise something?" "watch over them, and protect them, will you not?"" - Sans

↑"Actually, that reminds me. Toriel once wore a flower-patterned muu-muu... Folks kept saying "nice muu-muu" to her, but she kept thinking they were calling her a cow. So she never wore it again." - Gerson